Taiwan’s annual tung blossom festival helps promote and preserve Hakka culture.

The Hakka Tung Blossom Festival kicks off at locations across Taiwan in mid-April each year. Around this period, large numbers of the white flowers begin to drop from trees, blanketing the ground in May snow, as the fallen petals are known. To capitalize on public interest in the stunning visuals, the Cabinet-level Hakka Affairs Council launched the festival in 2002. It has since grown from a one-day to monthlong celebration, drawing tens of millions of visitors to events in more than a dozen cities and counties.

Tung trees were first brought to Taiwan’s hilly regions as a cash crop during Japanese colonial rule (1895-1945). The water-resistant oil extracted from tung seeds was much sought-after among makers of boats, furniture and paper umbrellas. Since the trees were primarily cultivated in places with large Hakka populations, tung oil became an important income source for many members of the ethnic group.

Over time, the oil was replaced by cheaper synthetic alternatives. Yet the blossoms remain a prominent symbol of Hakka culture as well as an important tourist draw for many communities. The festival in particular provides a financial boon and helps promote and preserve Hakka traditions. Sampling local cuisine, buying souvenirs and viewing cultural performances are all popular activities among participants.

As Hakka author Fan Wen-fang (范文芳) writes in “Tung Blossom Poem”:

When my father was living, tung trees covered the mountain.

Merchants wanted to purchase their seeds.

Now my father has died, tung blossoms cover the mountain.

Poets cherish the flowers.

The economic value of the tung tree may have decreased, but its rich cultural significance endures. 

—by Jim Hwang